Virginia Galle served two terms on City Council between 1981 and 1989.
The daughter of career Salvation Army officers, she was a librarian and high
school English teacher in the Midwest before moving to Seattle. Influenced by
the women’s movement, in 1965 Galle went back to school to earn a master’s
degree at the University of Washington’s Graduate School of Public Affairs,
writing her thesis on King County’s home-rule charter. She began working in the
City of Seattle’s new Citizens Service Bureau, an agency which served as a
resource for information and a clearinghouse for complaints about the city.
Galle worked her way up through the ranks to become the head of the agency.

In 1973, she became the first woman department head in Seattle city
government when she was appointed director of the Department of Licenses and
Consumer Affairs. She eventually was fired from that position by Mayor Wes
Uhlman after her aggressive pursuit of companies she perceived to be swindling
the public. She served as executive director of the Girl Scouts Totem Council
from 1977 until she resigned in 1981 to run for a City Council seat vacated by
Randy Revelle.

While on the Council, Galle chaired the City Operations and Utilities
(1982-1983), Environmental Management (1984-1987), and Finance and Personnel
(1988-1989) committees. In 1987, she testified before a U.S. Congressional
subcommittee on municipal solid waste issues. She lost her seat to Tom Weeks in
the 1989 election. After leaving the Council, Galle worked as a consultant and
remained active in community affairs.

The collection consists of correspondence, memoranda, reports, notes,
surveys, newspaper clippings, and other materials relating to Galle’s work on
various City Council committees. Materials have been organized into topical
categories relating to issues of concern to the City Council.

A large portion of the materials reflects Galle’s extensive work on
solid waste issues. One major initiative documented in the files is a proposal
to demolish the West Point secondary treatment plant and build a new plant in
Interbay. The files contain a large number of citizen comments about this plan.
Another key topic is solid waste management, including issues surrounding a
proposal to build a mass burn incinerator.

Another set of materials focuses on the development of smoking policies
for City employees. Files chronicle the development of the policy, from
recruitment of smoking and non-smoking employees to serve on the Citywide
Smoking Policy Development Committee through employee input and legal
challenges.

Domestic partnership was another issue Galle worked on. Files relate to
two Council Bills addressing domestic partner benefits and use of sick leave
and funeral leave for domestic partners. Materials include correspondence, news
clippings, constituent letters, and background information.

Other topics covered in this collection include the redevelopment of
Seattle Center, including files relating to a proposal from Disney to take over
the site; management compensation; the admissions tax; the City Light customer
information system; and the Seattle/Kent Good Neighbor Program.